Sword Art Online - The Black Darkness
by EC13-Print
Summary: The castle of Aincrad, in all its grandeur, was plagued with a curse. The fear of thousands formed a thick, suffocating fog of "Eternal Night". This is the Dark side of Sword Art Online.


Hello FanFiction readers and «Sword Art Online»/«Sodo Ato Onrain» fans, EC13 here writing my first story in years. Anyway, I hope that any readers will give me advice and help me to improve on my writing.

Also, this is an AU FanFic which will have OCs. However, please do not let these deter you from reading the story and I will make sure that Kirito is still the main protagonist and he will in no way be overshadowed by an OC.

Thank you for reading this foreword.

**[Chapter I: Kirigaya Kazuto | Enter: «The World of Swords»]**

_The feel of the wind rushing past me as I lunge towards my enemy. The resistance I feel as my blade virtually cleaves through its flesh. The rush of excitement as I successfully slew the beast. I was rewarded with a resounding chime as my skills improved and my abilities were taken a level higher. However, the sensation of the battle was a reward of its own kind; it was a sort of release, something I needed and craved, it was an experience utterly unparalleled and I relished in it for hours into the dark nights. However, this world was so enchantingly ethereal because it simply was not real. This was the __**«World of Swords»**__._

* * *

The feel of the weak breeze gently passing me. The monumentally mundane brick walls entering and exiting my field of vision. The muffled sound of my weak legs kicking off against the asphalt as I dashed towards my home. Sweat dripped off my fringe as I inhaled and exhaled exhaustedly. This world was so disappointingly real.

"Thump, thump, thump…" The sound of my muffled footsteps barely reached my ears as I tiredly trudged up the staircase leading to a door. What was behind that door? It was my simple room, plainly furnished.

Upon opening the door, I dragged my lazy legs towards my computer. As it blazed through the boot process, the gentle, welcoming whir of its fans relaxed me as I gently gripped the helmet, running my fingers across its smooth, plastic surface. My computer beeped. It was ready. I was ready. I closed my eyes to give them a moment's rest before I donned the headgear; the **«NerveGear»** A smirk sneaked its way onto my face as I uttered two magic words, "**«Link Start»**."

The visor placed over my eyes faded to black, only to be replaced by radiant beams of light zipping past me in a pure white tunnel. This bizarre situation would have left anyone baffled; anyone who was a newbie. The cold strangeness of the scene before me emanated a familiar warmth; how ironic that it comes from a machine, and a virtual one at that. Suddenly, I was once again thrust into the intangible darkness; it blinded me. I was blinded yet again as the bright sun shone directly on my face. But it didn't sting. A wide grin made its way onto my face, replacing its lifeless features. A breeze brew across my ideal faceas I stretched my arms out, embracing the world which I had come to love.

* * *

I felt liberated. I felt strong. I felt excited. I felt a familiar weight on my back and I reached for it, caressing the leather-bound grip of my blade. The mere contact sent shivers down my spine. That slight stimulation filled me with energy. That was all I needed as I kicked hard against the concrete, racing through the familiar Victorian-style market, snaking through the crowd and dashing through the shady alleys like a speeding shadow. Having been through here many more times than I would have liked, I knew this place like the back of my hand; my hand that loved the familiar weight of my sword while slicing and cleaving enemies. The wind swept past my face, refreshing and invigorating me unnecessarily. I felt amazing. As I bolted off the market street and into another alley, I caught the eye of a red haired player. "Oi! You're a **«Beta Tester»**, right? You've got to be! Please show me the ropes!"

When such a seemingly mature player begs you for help in such a childish fashion, there's no saying no; especially when it appeals to my ego. I agreed with minimal hesitation; it was my job as a beta tester to share my experience with newbies, though I do wish I was paid.

"Oompf!" the man had all the air knocked out of his lungs as he fell to the ground with a loud thud. Some jokes grew funnier as they were repeated, even in succession. However, there was a limit to how many times they could be repeated, and after having watched him fail 76 times, it had long ceased to be funny. Now, it was nothing short of pitiable and embarrassing.

"Klein, like I said, you just take the pose and let the skill charge up, the system will guide you through the **«Sword Skill»**…" As I said it, I engaged the boar which he had angered and allowed my blade to be engulfed in an azure aura.

"Swoosh!" I appeared 4 meters behind the boar I was facing, sword pointing dead ahead as the boar dropped dead, defeated by the swift slash, **«Horizontal»**. As I turned to eye Klein, seated on a large boulder, I caught him with his mouth agape, mouthing an elongated "wow". This seemed to reignite the passion in his eyes as he prepared for another seemingly vain attempt at defeating his first boar. Betraying my expectations, his mysteriously pre-unlocked **«Curved Sword»** glowed faintly orange as he activated the strike Sword Skill** «Reaver»**. His cheers of elation were met with my lethargic applause. Amusingly, he believed the boar to be a low-mid level **«Field Boss»**. I brought him back to _virtual _reality by clarifying that he had only conquered the equivalent of the cliché **«Slime»**. Disappointed, Klein proceeded to test out his Sword Skill with increasing excitement.

"It's quite daring isn't it; to make an RPG without Magic?"

"But it feels so much more exciting to actually move your own body when fighting." I gave him my opinion as a smile crept onto my face.

Nodding in agreement, Klein beamed and rejoiced with excitement.

"Growl…" A rumbling sound emanated from under Klein's **«Beginner Chest Armor»**.

"I'm hungry... I've ordered some pizza to be delivered at 5.30, I'll introduce to my some of my friends next time. I'll **«Login»** right after dinner!"

Nodding in agreement, I turned to begin **«Hunting»** in order to get a head start on my **«Levelling»**. This time, I would get to the **«8****th**** Floor»** twice as fast; a month would be enough. As I began to reminisce about my beta test experience, Klein's discovery caught my attention immediately. "Huh? The "Logout" button isn't there…"

"Impossible, it should be at the bottom of the **«Main Menu»**… Huh?" I rebutted Klein swiftly, only to be caught off guard as I too noticed the same anomaly in my own Main Menu.

"See? It's not there, right? Well, it's the first day of official release; there's bound to be bugs. Hey, I bet the server operators are freaking out right now! Heh heh heh!

"You'll be freaking out really soon too; it's currently 5.25."

As the realization dawned on Klein, an epiphany hit him, and it him hard, "MY TERIYAKI AND MAYO PIZZA AND GINGER ALE!"

As he wailed in uncalled for terror, I tried to think rationally and told him to send the **«Game Masters»** a notice.

He stopped screaming. That was the only good thing that happened. Hopefully, Klein inquired, "Isn't there another way to **«Logout»**?"

After moments of sifting through my memory, fear started to creep its way onto my face as I answered in a deadpan voice, "No. There isn't. A player has to go through the Main Menu to **«Logout»**. There wasn't an emergency Logout in the manual either… The only other way I can think of… is if someone removes the NerveGear from our heads…"

Somewhat relieved, yet still growing increasingly worried, Klein said that he lived alone and asked about my situation. Wondering how much to tell him, I answered that I lived with my mother and younger sister who would likely notice by dinnertime. At this point…

"You have a younger sister?! How old is she? I-is she cute?!"

Frightened out of my wits, I stammered under his grip, "Sh-she's in a sports club, a-and she hates games. She has nothing in common with people like us—"

"Who cares—"

I kneed him where the sun didn't shine.

"Ouch ouch ouch… Ah!" Cries of pain and agony echoed into the woods beyond the **«Beginner Hunting Grounds»** as Klein clutched his crotch while rolling on the floor.

"Oh right, it doesn't hurt. But this bug is super weird."

"It's more than just a bug; the inability to log out will have serious repercussions on the game's future. In fact, they could just shut down the server and log everyone out in situations like this, but there hasn't been an announcement. Nor is any visible action being taken to come up with a solution…"

"Ring. Ring. Ring." The sound of bells resounded through the entire **«1st Floor»**, calling our attention to the plaza. Then, black.

* * *

The world disappeared into pure blackness before we appeared at the plaza in a flash. Literally. As more players materialised in the plaza at an alarming rate, I was filled with optimism—and suspicion. After all, this was a major bug—assuming that was what it was—but with the ability to instantaneously notify every player using a Game Master's special permissions and console commands, was it necessary to call all of us to the plaza? Normally, a **«Forced Teleport»** such as this would be for a ceremony or some grand event… Was this really a bug?

**THIS MIGHT BE A GAME**

**BUT IT ISN'T MEANT TO BE PLAYED**

The words echoed from the far reaches of my memory, promising danger, instilling fear. Those were the words he uttered. The words the creator uttered. The words Akihiko Kayaba left when asked about the game—but what did they mean? Was he merely talking about its high degree of realism and detail? Or was he hinting at something, sending a signal to potential players—sending a warning.

"Oi, what's going on?! Kirito?" A flustered Klein darted his head left and right, confused, frightened. Before I answered, the whole world was dyed a red hue. **«Error»** filled the sky, forming a hemisphere which sealed off the plaza. People tried to run, scared senseless, innate instincts willing them to flee from what they could not grasp—could not comprehend.

They failed. Unseen by our eyes, a **«Barrier»** had closed off all the exits, rendering 10,000 players trapped in the plaza whilst they were trapped in the game. What were we? An ant colony being trapped within layers of bell jars? It felt like all we could do was wait in agony as we waited to be saved, killed, tortured or fed—whatever the masters desired.

As dozens of people began to panic, red oozed out of the **«Error»** filled sky, resembling blood but behaving like vapour. As the mist grew thicker as more vapour seeped in through the very thing that trapped us. Blood was congregating at certain specific places in the centre of the plaza within **«The Town of Beginnings»**. As the vapour condensed into a solid form, what appeared was a black, looming, hooded figure— or so we thought— within the hooded robe, nothing breathed, nothing could be seen, and yet it instilled fear in everything.

Everyone was afraid. Everyone was tense. Everyone was waiting for the inevitable, yet praying for the seemingly impossible.

"I am Kayaba Akihiko, the creator of this is not a bug_**.**_"

Five words. Five words was all it took to make everything sink in, to instill fear in ten thousand players. I knew what was coming next.

"It's a feature of Sword Art Online. Once you die in-game, your brain will be destroyed by the NerveGear. To get out, all you need to do is clear the game; reach the **«100****th**** Floor»** of **«Aincrad»** and defeat the **«Final Boss»**. I have given all of you a gift, check your inventories now."

The plaza echoed with uproars and cries of confusion. It was deafening, but as fear continued to grip me and I urgently check my inventory, all the sounds that assailed my ears were muffled.

A mirror…?

I was blinded, engulfed in a pillar of white light. Judging by the shrieks of surprise echoing around me, it seemed that more players were being engulfed at an increasing rate. The light vanished. I was still here. Nothing happened. But something was off…

"Klein!"

"Kirito!"

"EH?!" We shouted in unison, looking bewildered and perplexed as we stared, pointed and gaped at each other dumbfounded. In front of me was a man of the same height, same personality and same **«Player Name»** as Klein. So, it absolutely _had_to be him; but I just couldn't banish my doubts. That bandana was still on his head, and after sweeping my eyes over the crowd multiple times, I concluded that there was no other similar looking bandana in sight. So, how was it that the smooth shoulder length red hair became short, scruffy and somewhat spiky? How was it that the one in front of me, with the exact same stature as Klein, looked so different?

Strange… This appearance seems to suit him… It's almost as if this would be what he really looked like in real life…

Wait, the mirror!

I knew what was coming, no, what had happened. Glancing at the mirror served the sole purpose of confirming my hypothesis. Staring back at me from inside the mirror I held in hand was not a handsome, princely, long-haired hero that could have blended in as an anime protagonist; no, what stared back at me, was me_**.**_

"What's going on Kirito?"

Pondering on my reply for a second, I knew that any answer I could provide would be lacking in detail and accuracy. Pointing straight at Kayaba Akihiko's persona, I gave him what seemed to be the most appropriate answer, "I have a hunch, but I bet he'll explain everything in a second anyways."

Turning our attention to him, it seemed like people, now barely calmer than after the sudden transformation— or should I say reversion— people began to stare in fear at Kayaba Akihiko, demanding answers with their _non_-silent glares.

"**This concludes the official launch ceremony of «SWORD ART ONLINE»!"**

* * *

No. This couldn't be true. This game was the focal point of my life for two entire months. I had spent countless hours of my existence immersed within this beautiful world. I had **«Respawned»** at the Town of Beginnings many times, embarrassed.

But back then, I could still wear a sheepish grin. Now, the world was different, my life was no more— no, this was my life. Dead or alive, I would never be able to respawn ever again. Failure was not an option. Death was absolute. This danger was now real.

I felt weak. I felt afraid. I felt like giving up. There was nowhere to run to. This used to be my safe haven; my release. My freedom. It is now but a cage.

Break through. Survive!

Resources were limited, I had to act fast. Years of **«MMO»** immersion had taught me that. But this was different, this was my life. Something was tying me down emotionally, stopping me from sprinting off into the fields, armed with my knowledge from the beta test.

It was Klein. Of all the people I had met, he was the only one who seemed to fit the meaning of the word "friend". In this world, in the real world or in any other plane of existence, he was my only friend. I could bring him with me. Staring at him as he frantically scanned the crowd, I made my request.

"Klein, leave with me. I know the safe route to the next **«Town»**. We should go there and start hunting. The Beginner Hunting Grounds will be picked dry in days. It's not productive to wait for them to slowly respawn so we should gather as many resources as we can before—"

"Ki— Kirito… I can't. My friends and I waited in line for days to get our hands on this game. They're somewhere in that crowd! I can't abandon them."

I stared at the hideous crowd as they cried out in mindless panic. Are you sure, Klein?

I didn't bother asking, Klein was loyal. I could tell by the look in his eyes. But I could not afford to bring more than one person with me— they would be a threat to my— oursurvival and I would not be able to guarantee their protection. Go, Kirito. Go. You will meet him again one day, but to do that you have to survive. Go!

With desolate resolution, I wheeled around, head hung low and walked through the alley in silence, unnoticed by the crowd. This would play to my advantage.

As I took my first step away from the plaza, Klein stunned me one last time, "Kirito! You've got a pretty cute face! I'll see you again someday!"

Yes, I will see him again one day. I'm sure of it.

"That scruffy face of yours suits you much better, too." With my farewell and a final wave, I turned around to part ways. When I hesitated for a split second and looked over my shoulder, he was already gone.

WillI see him again one day? If there's one thing I was truly sure of, it was that I was definitely not sure.

Alone, I sprinted off into the distance towards the next town. "Ping!" I had **«Levelled Up»** as I charged through the **«Wolf»**, killing it with a Vertical.

**I WILL SURVIVE**

* * *

_A/N: So how was the first chapter? I tried to make it longer but as far as I know, unless more suspense is needed, writing based on feeling is better than having to perfectly meet length quotas for every paragraph; which is silly._

_Anyway, if you like my writing, follow. If you don't like it, review and follow. If you followed without reviewing, go and review it and consider adding it to your favourites eventually._

_Slight Warning though, I am not a frequent updater, however, I aim to upload one chapter every fortnight or two._

_Word Count: 2884_


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